Graduate Student Health Insurance Program – Enrollment for 2020-21

To: Deans, Directors and Department Chairs
From: Suzanne Barbour, Dean, The Graduate School; Ken Pittman, Executive Director, Campus Health Services

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide information regarding the 2020-21 enrollment process for the Graduate Student Health Insurance Plan (GSHIP) as well as other pertinent information. The 2020-21 policy year is from August 1, 2020 through July 31, 2021.

All graduate students enrolled in at least 1 credit hour, in a degree-seeking program, and eligible to pay the student health fee at UNC-Chapel Hill are required to show evidence of an existing creditable coverage health insurance policy or enroll in the UNC System-wide plan (Student Blue plan). GSHIP is considered a creditable policy.

Graduate students with the status of Research Assistant (RA), Teaching Assistant (TA), Fellow or Trainee are eligible for enrollment in GSHIP. GSHIP is a blanket accident and illness policy that is different than the UNC System-wide mandatory student health insurance plan (Student Blue plan). It is also separate from insurance programs for Clinical Fellows, Postdoctoral Trainees, and Postdoctoral Research Associates. Graduate students should be enrolled in the GSHIP plan through their academic programs.

Each semester, graduate students enrolled in GSHIP must submit an online waiver to use their GSHIP insurance as evidence of coverage. Failure to waive out results in the student account being charged for the UNC System Health Insurance Plan. Details on the waiver process can be found on the Campus Health website. The fall waiver deadline is September 10, 2020 and the spring waiver deadline is January 31, 2021.

To be eligible for the 2020-21 policy year, the minimum prescribed compensation amount for services that a student must receive is $5,700.

The premium cost per student for annual coverage provided through Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC is $4,137.60 per year or $344.80 per month. This premium amount is subject to anticipated final approval from the North Carolina Department of Insurance. The Campus Health Fee remains unchanged at $200.08 per semester ($400.16 per academic year) for fiscal year 2020-21.

The following policy, procedures, forms, and manual (see links below) provide detailed information about GSHIP. Please review all documents.

• Policy 1112 –GSHIP Eligibility Criteria and Other Provisions of the Health Insurance Plan
• Procedure 1112.1 – Verifying Student Eligibility for GSHIP
• Form – 1112.1.1f – GSHIP Verification of Student Eligibility
• Procedure 1112.2 – Enrolling in the Graduate Student Health Insurance Plan (GSHIP)
• Procedure 1112.4 – Paying GSHIP Insurance Premium

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